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History · Eagle River

Eagle River’s post office opened in 1861, and 17% of its homes were built before 1940

2 places in town are on the National Register. Below: maps from 1946 on.

1861first post office
2on the National Register
17%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Paul R. Burley · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Eagle River began

When was Eagle River founded?

1861

The Eagle River post office opened in 1861, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 65165 years
Founding year: the first Eagle River post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Eagle River’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Eagle River are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Eagle River’s homes were built before 1958.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Eagle River’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Eagle River’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story

How Eagle River came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Eagle River.

Read it all →

Eagle River was a boom town of the copper mining era in the Keweenaw. Copper was discovered in 1845 at the Cliff Range nearby, the so-called "Cliff Lode". The land of the Eagle River community had been leased by the Keweenaw Copper Company in 1843. It was later platted by the Phoenix Company and sold as individual lots. The first postmaster was named on October 24, 1845. It was part of Houghton County until Keweenaw County was organized in 1861. The profitability of the area's copper mines had begun to decline sharply by around 1870.

The Eagle River Timber Bridge is a wooden arch bridge that carries highway M-26 over the Eagle River. It opened in 1990 as a replacement for the historic Lake Shore Drive Bridge that runs parallel to it.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Eagle River, decade by decade

Today4 recent
Eagle River Falls and Dam - Michigan Registered Historic Site2016Eagle River Falls and Dam - Michigan Registered Histo…EagleRiverSignM262010EagleRiverSignM26Keweenaw Court House & Jail2008Keweenaw Court House & JailEagle River 023 212006Eagle River 023 21
On the map

Eagle River on the map, 1946 to 1975

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Eagle River. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Eagle River on the 1946 USGS mapEagle River on the 1975 USGS map1946Phoenix sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Eagle River.

On the National Register

2 listings protect 28 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
28
each building in a district counts

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Houghton Township11 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townAllouez Township1 historic placeA−Eagle Harbor Township11 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Eagle River’s history

What year was Eagle River founded?

The Eagle River post office opened in 1861, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (4), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people and U.S. Geological Survey historical maps. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.